Optical communication systems are able to transmit data between two points through a light propagating in a medium. The medium may be a waveguide such as is used in fiber optic lines or intra-chip or chip-to-chip optical links. The medium may be free space, such as in free space optical communication systems, which transmit data through light from one point to another without the use of waveguides. Optical communication systems are being used more and more in high speed data transmission applications. Some of the systems require extensive infrastructure, such as fiber optic ground lines, while others require fabricated chips or minimal circuitry, such as the on-chip links or free space systems. A particular application may dictate which optical link is employed for data transmission.
Optical communication systems convert a signal from a signal to an optical signal using a transmitter circuit and send it through the medium to a receiver circuit. Such systems may use infrared light due to the ability of infrared wavelengths to be transmitted through the medium with less attenuation and dispersion than other wavelengths, though theoretically any wavelength may be used as is suitable to the medium through which the light propagates.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements.